Although it is well recognised that incidence of pulmonary embolism (PE) increases with age, PE has been shown to be an important cause of mortality in younger age groups. A study by Sakuma et al. in 2007 examining autopsy records found that PE accounted for 2.3% of deaths in the 20–39 age group [1]. Only 20% of PEs discovered at autopsy had been diagnosed during life. However, there are relatively few studies looking specifically at PE in a younger age group.
